Florida Gators grew up during Elite Eight run

PHOENIX – Perspective came quickly for Florida, even as the sting of its season-ending loss lingered in the locker room. To a man, the players said they appreciated the accomplishment of a year that ended in the Elite Eight defeat to Louisville on Saturday.

The Gators had taken a seventh seed back to the regional final, again falling one game short of a Final Four. Depending on the frame of reference, that either exceeded or fell short of expectations for this team.

Ranked in the preseason top 10, and as high as No. 8 in the Associated Press poll, Florida (26-10) was expected to contend for a second consecutive SEC title. A guard-heavy team would have players in new roles in the frontcourt. But by February, it became clear that Kentucky was every bit deserving of its No. 1 ranking and unbeaten run through conference play.

As the Wildcats were clinching that title, the Gators faltered after the loss of forward Will Yeguete to a broken foot and lost four of their final five coming into the NCAA Tournament.

"A lot of teams had battled us, didn't think we could get this far but we proved a lot of people wrong," said Beal. "We had higher expectations. We expected to get to the Final Four."

With their lowest seed since 2010, the Gators held their first three opponents to 51 points per game. They were the higher seed in the second and third rounds in Omaha, beating No. 10 Virginia and No. 15 Norfolk State, before topping No. 3 Marquette in the Sweet 16.

"I think we had a hell of a season," said senior Erving Walker. "I know some people had us pegged to go out in the first round. I think this team battled and we had a great journey."

Coach Billy Donovan was unwilling to look ahead to next year following the loss to Louisville. This year had been difficult enough.

Replacing three seniors in the frontcourt, Donovan struggled with younger players maturing. Center Patric Young and forward Erik Murphy went from role players to dependable starters. Young had the toughest defensive challenge in the first two rounds of the tournament. Murphy had his best three-game span on the boards to end the season, grabbing 26 in those games for an average (8.6 rpg) nearly double that of this season (4.4 rpg).

Freshman guard Bradley Beal, meanwhile, learned to deal with newfound adversity throughout the year as he struggled through shooting slumps he'd never dealt with in high school. In the tournament, he was outstanding.

He was named to the All-Region team after shooting 60.5 percent in four games, including 42.1 percent from 3-point range, while averaging 15.7 points and 8.2 rebounds per game.

Donovan said his lasting memory of this season would be "a team that was really young and immature in a lot of ways and in front of my eyes, I got a chance to watch them grow up and mature competitively."

Now, the question is what to expect for next year. Beal is a lottery pick if he decides to leave for the NBA Draft. Young said earlier this season that he plans on returning, and junior guard Kenny Boynton told The Gainesville Sun he hasn't made a decision yet.

Beal and Boynton said they wouldn't let Saturday's loss affect their decisions. With the pain of it all too fresh, they remained focused on what they'd accomplished this year.

"Journey's been great. The way it ended was terrible," said Beal. "Through all the games we've played, these guys were terrific. … We're all taking this hard, but we'll move on from this."